


Wings of Liberty

by FifthAngel



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, 進撃の巨人 | Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, F/M, M/M, Titan Shifter Reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:13:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28521456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FifthAngel/pseuds/FifthAngel
Summary: Act 1:Two Titans break through wall Maria.Act 2:A horde of Titans invade the insides of the wall.Act 3:They devour every human they have in sight,What's the name of the play?Hell on earth.Canon Divergence in which Marco was not killed.
Relationships: Eren Yeager/Reader, Jean Kirstein/Reader
Kudos: 11





	1. Betrayal

Blood, sweat, tears.

A heart beating so fast it felt close to exploding. Muscles that felt close to tearing. Lungs aching from the cold air being inhaled. His body hurt, his body ached, his eyes dried as the wind hit his face. He felt unable to breathe, he felt suffocated, he wanted to just let himself fall. Anxiety was building up, slowly taking his ability to move. He had to stop. But he could not.

The persecution was nowhere near its end. He had to keep maneuvering for the sake of his life. He looked back, seeing three faraway figures tailing behind him, a small wave of relief enveloping his body. Just as he turned to look up front, he was flying directly to a wall. He looked around, some place he could hook his gear and escape the incoming crash, but it all seemed to be a dead end. He looked behind his shoulders, and the three persecutors neared the young boy at an exhilaratingly speed.

He could not let himself be caught by them. At least not until he told someone. At least not until he knew his friends would be safe from this threat. He took a deep breath and hooked his wires, nowhere in particular, sending the boy shooting right up to the sky, barely being able to avoid crashing against the wall. As his wires finally unhooked, he gasped. The sky looked so blue, despite the horrible scenery occurring just below him.

“What a nice sight would it be to look at before dying” He murmured to himself as his muscles tensed and started making his way down, his eyes never leaving the soft blue that enveloped the sky.

_He was tired. Ever since the Titans’ attack, everything has been about killing every single one of them. There was no time to take a breather. A lost second meant another life lost, perhaps maybe his own. Since the moment he and his mates were called to battle, he had already decided._

_‘Today will not be the day I die.’_

_As he flew around the zone that was assigned to him and his squad, he tried paying closer attention to his surrounding in hope to find said squad and in the meanwhile, getting rid of the remaining Titans. Just as the heavy body of a 15m beast fell, he was able to get a glimpse of a familiar blonde hair, and quickly made his way before another Titan appeared._

_Safely landing on the same roof where his crewmates stood, he started walking to them, but upon seeing the look on their faces, he hid behind a tall chimney, carefully listening to their banter. His gut told him something was wrong, that he had to take flight, but before he could even listen to the most reasonable part of himself, he became unable to move as he heard what his comrades, his friends, were seriously discussing._

_“Plugging the hole that way?” The blond known as Reiner Braun scoffed, rolling his blue colored eyes “That’s a stupid plan. Eren might as well get eaten out there” His companion, Bertholdt Hoover, nodded._

_“If that happens, they might stay ignorant forever”_

_“Yeah” The blond sighed “If it comes down to it, I’ll have to take control of it with my Titan” Those were the words that set the hiding boy into panic. He felt his heart rate increase and his breathing hitch as the conversation continued._

_“If their plan works, they’ll cover the hole we worked so hard to make” The taller man said while pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance. The other one limited himself to shrug before replying._

_“Who cares? We finally found the key we’ve spent the last five years looking for” He assuredly smiled and patted Bertholdt._

_The freckled boy was frozen in place. Whatever he had heard, whether a joke or not, had to be delivered to a higher command, someone needed to know about this, that is what he thought._

_Just as he was about to make his way to find help, the roof creaked under his feet, and as soon as the sound echoed, two pair of eyes stared down at the shaking figure of Marco Bott. As the three looked at each other, the freckled boy composed his stance and without thinking, started blurting out whatever crossed his foggy mind._

_“Hey, what are you even talking about” He painfully chuckled, feeling as tears started forming, threatening to fall “What do you mean by ‘My Titan’, Reiner? What hole did you work so hard on making Bertholdt?” Marco asked, knowing the answer to both of those questions, a small glimpse of hope that, perhaps, there was a reasonable explanation to what he heard._

_Seeing as both of his crewmate’s faces paled, that hope however was forever extinguished. All his mind could think of, where escaping maneuvers. His thoughts were interrupted._

_“Marco, we were just kidding?” Reiner said, unable to find a decent excuse it seemed to Marco. The boy just wanted to say it was alright and to leave it behind so he could run, but his mouth opened once again, aggressively raising his both to both cadets._

_“Are you nuts?” He flinched at the sound of his own yelling “I can understand how this situation would make us say stuff we would not really say, but focus on the mission, even one dead Titan will help us clear them out “He said, his volume decreasing with every word uttered. Both boys just stared at him, Marco unable to read the expression in their faces. That did not matter now, though. “Look a Titan, let’s get it” Before he finished his sentence, he was already soaring though the skies._

_The moment he avoided the Titan he had mentioned, he knew he was being tailed, so he set his mind on one thing._

_Telling the truth._

But he has been escaping for hours, and he was sore all over.

He felt the cool breeze as he let himself fall. Maybe everyone would be able to survive without him. Maybe they could find out by themselves and he could just finally take a breather.

It was hell on earth. Did he really want to continue fighting?

A quick figure then passed by his side, his heart jumped in fear and surprise. He turned his head and saw as a blonde-haired girl fly through the buildings, making her way towards the cadets Marco has been running away from. A weird feeling started setting at the pit of the freckled boy’s stomach. Something felt off again and before he could fully comprehend it, it hit him.

_Bertholdt Hoover, Reiner Braun, and Annie Leonhardt._

He woke up from his suicidal trance and just before his back crashed against the hard floor, he shot his wires and was sent flying up. He lost balance for a second but quickly regained this balance and started making his way towards the top of the wall, where all Officers stood.

His muscles were still very sore, his heart was still trying to escape his chest, but he pulled through, with tears streaming down his face, he continued moving on. It felt just as if the weight of the world was resting upon his shoulders, and maybe it was, maybe this tiny bit of information was everything they needed to eliminate the threat that the Titans provoked.

Finally, after minutes of searching he found the where the officers where stationed.

With the remaining energy he had left, he hooked the wires and started climbing the wall. He tried running up, shooting his wires every time he got closer. He knew he was making progress, but his sight started to blur as he slowly and unsteadily reached the top, and every time he blinked, it all seemed so far away.

He was close, so close, and just when he was about to reach the top, he shouted, using the last inch of energy within him.

“Commander Pyxis”

And then his eyes closed.

He was falling.

Again.


	2. Cowardice

_ “Mom?” A tiny voice shrieked in fear.  _

_ A lonely child screamed, eyes as wide as plates, green eyes uncontrollably shaking in anxiety and desperation. He yelled louder, feeling as his throat tore apart, but no matter how loud he yelled, no one could hear him. There was nothing he could do. _

_ He stared at the scene that lied upon him. His mother restlessly and uselessly shaking and kicking, fighting with claws and teeth, and in a sick and twisted way, it was heartwarming. That is the woman he knew as his mother, fighting until the very end. But then, just like that, in a matter of seconds, his heart broke, his screams stopped, and his mother died. _

_ It is rather gruesome for a child to stare at the death of their beloved mother, watching her being toyed around by a Titan until it got bored and being cracked in half just to be ambitiously eaten. Blood sprayed all around the scene, falling right to his face, a look of horror and repulsion on his face, almost enough to make him puke. _

_ He should have done something, he thought, as his tiny hand reached for the blood that stained his face. He should have been able to save his mother. They were so close, just a second more and maybe the three of them could have ran away, or at the very least, they could have died together. _

_ If Hannes just had not been there. If he just had not listened to his mother’s insane request. If only he had not thrown him on his shoulder and ran away… Maybe he would not be feeling this lonely. _

_ The Titan was no longer there, but the scene kept replaying on his mind. Over and over again, he could see it all. His dear mother dying cruelly at the hands of a giant devil. And all he did was stare and scream. Why was that the only thing he could do? Why was he so tiny, so weak? Was this his fault for being so useless? _

_ All he could do at that moment was wonder. _

_ But it had to be a dream, a nightmare.  _

_ The tears, the blood, the pain. This was not a nightmare, no. It was way worse than that. _

_ It was a memory. _

Green Emeralds stared at the null roof of his bunk. He blinked, trying to scare away the tears that threatened to fall, and sat down at the edge of his resting place and hid his face behind his hands. He was bathed in cold, sticky sweat, his heart racing out of his body, trembling legs, and it was just as if he was once again looking at her.

_ You weren’t able to save your mother because you were not strong enough _

“What a shit thing to wake up to” He muttered to himself.

Unable to fall back asleep, he readied himself up for the disbanding ceremony, which was just a couple hours away, and decided to go for an early jog to clear his mind from the haunting memories. 

Swiftly and quietly, he left the cabin, careful to not wake up the rest of his comrades and started trotting to the training grounds.

It had been three years since he joined the military. Time moved so fast lately, that he could feel as if it were yesterday that he found hard to even use the 3D Gear. He chuckled to himself at the memory of his face crashing against the dirt. In the end, it was just a faulty item. He also remembered the friends he made along the way, and the different things he had learnt from them. He wondered where his friends are headed to. Military Police, The Garrison, or Survey Corps?

For him, there was only one option.

Ever since the moment he was born, he was caged. He had a family, he had stability, but somehow, he wanted more, he wanted to escape the walls that surrounded him and see what lies beyond. What is hiding on the other side? Is there more to the world than what they are used to? Only the Survey Corps knew the secret of what lies out there. The Wings of Liberty. They represented freedom, and that was all he has ever wanted.

He wanted to be free.

The sound of grunting and boots hitting against the dirt made him lose his train of thoughts and falter on his step. He had not expected anyone else to be awake at this time of the morning. Curiously, the young man followed the sounds just to find one of his fellow training mate sparring by herself. 

He stared at her, his eyes unable to leave her perfect posture and feeling quite surprised at seeing the beautiful deliver of her punches, no hesitation in her movements and perfect synchronization. He tried to identify her yet failed at it. He was sure he had seen her around, but he had never had a conversation with her at all. Was she even in the same training squad as he?

She looked like a hard worker, and her stamina levels must be high, as she seemed just as if she had been at it for hours, for the look of the boot marks on ground and the dirt that stained her clothes, yet she looked nowhere near as tired.

_ She’ll make a good soldier _ .

As soon as those narrowed and hard eyes of her turned to look at his own emeralds, he turned away and started jogging away, thinking maybe she wanted to be left alone. 

He looked up to the blue sky and realized people were starting to wake up. He then realized the stench in which he was bathed and decided to take a soak before the ceremony, it was still a couple of hours away, so he had time.

Let the day begin.

He made top ten. He tried to hide his excitement yet failing miserably as a stupidly wide grin remained plastered on his face. Somehow, he felt proud of himself, something he had not felt in a long while if not ever. He tried to listen as the three branches were being explained by a commander officer, but he left his mind wander for a bit as his decision had been set in stone since the moment he laid a foot inside the training camp. 

_ Today is the day it begins. The battle for freedom. As long as I remain alive, no Titan will be able to escape from me. I will free ourselves from these walls, from the Titans. I will annihilate them so we can finally live without fear. I will kill them all. Every single one of them. They cannot escape me. _

His blood boiled in anticipation. He closed his fists and sank his nails on the palm of his hands to calm the exhilarating feeling that made his breath hitch.

“Dismissed” The Commander Officer finally ordered.

“Yes, Sir!” And just like that, all the cadets started dispersing to their respective cabins to then celebrate at the dining hall.

He quickly changed to a more casual and comfortable outfit and made his way towards the dining hall. He looked to his side as soon as he felt someone walking beside him and smiled upon seeing his blonde-haired friend, Armin Arlert. It was probably a few moments later that his other friend, Mikasa Ackerman, joined them, calmly walking on his other side.

The three of them entered the hall, and sat down at their usual table, Mikasa staying by his side and Armin sitting right across. Soon enough, Armin sparked a conversation and the three of them started to chat about today’s events. The green-eyed teen then remembered the girl he had seen earlier and was about to ask his black-haired companion whether she knew anything about her, but before he could even ask the question, his ears started catching a bit of the banter that was being discussed a few tables away from his own.

It was Jean Kirstein once again.

He rolled his eyes at the voice of his comrade. It was not that he hated said person, but his dreams and ideals really put him on edge. What irked him the most, was probably the fact that the brown-haired boy shamelessly targeted the Military Police simply for the commodity and security that serving the crown would offer. It was such a cowardly thing to do, he probably would freeze at the sight of a Titan.

He tried to ignore the other cadet’s rant, but the itch under his skin wouldn’t allow him to, so without thinking much about it, he stood from his seat, starling both his friends.

“Eren…” 

“You think the interior is comfortable?” He spat, all chatter dying down immediately “Until Five years ago this town was part of the interior too” Jean glared at him, hands in fists, trying to control his first impulse, Eren grinned “Jean, you do not have to go to the interior, I mean, isn’t the interior of your head soft enough?” He heard a small snort, but he paid no attention as the other cadet made his way towards him.

It only took a little more bickering before both started punching each other.

“Come on Eren, what’s wrong?” Jean breathed with a sly grin “If you can’t even win a fight against me, what makes you even think you could win against a Titan?” A kick on the abdomen and his was at loss of air.

“Shut up”

The fight escalated and the rest of his squad mates tried to calm the both of them down and separate them before any of them got seriously injured. Just as Mikasa was about to meddle, a strong hand took grip of Eren’s collar and pulled him off the other teen, aggressively throwing him to the floor.

The strong tug at his neck, left Eren desperately gasping for air. Once he composed himself, he looked up and saw the same girl he had seen earlier at the training grounds. He had one question, but Jean beat him to it.

“What the fuck?” He said, as the gal forcefully helped the boy stand up and then looked at Eren with an extended hand. He looked at her hand. A little bit too strong for a girl, and very calloused by the looks of it. It was bruised and her knuckles were broken. He knew he should have accepted the help, but the rage blinded his better judgement and instead slapping the hand away and standing up by himself, Mikasa rushing by his side, helping him dust off the dirt he had caught from the floor.

He finally looked at her, and up close, she was incredibly short, yet the brute force she possessed was beyond his expectations, especially from a tiny girl such as her. Her [E/C] eyes seemed so emotionless and dull, it was a bit scary to stare at. The way her [H/C] hair framed her face, made it almost impossible to fully see her expressions, though by the look in her eyes, he doubted he had many of those.

Everything stood quiet for a second, and everyone was staring at her. Silently though she started making his way out of the fighting circle. No one said a word. Not until Jean grasped her wrist and pulled her back in.

“Oi, I asked you a question you- “

“Do not dare touch me” A venomous voice said. The look on her eyes were no longer stoic but that of anger and ire. Her deep and raspy voice, even though silent, resonated all around the dining hall, leaving everyone frozen in place.

Jean quickly let go of her wrist.

“Freak”

Just like that, he was pushed against the wall. No one dared say anything as she almost growled at the other cadet.

“Say that again” She threatened, and at the lack of a reply, she chuckled “Like I thought, you really are a big coward, aren’t you? Can’t even thrown an insult to someone’s face” She shook her head lightly and stared at the boy’s eyes before viciously saying “You’re disgusting” The look of fear on Jean’s face was indescribable, Eren almost felt sorry for him. She continued, “There is nothing more disgusting than a coward who fakes braveness. I’ve heard you talk about joining the Military Police, let me tell you this…” And even though she was just talking to the boy she had in hands, everyone was listening “These walls that protect you, are going to fall someday, you won’t be safe anywhere. All this talk about being in the brigade, and being safe inside Sina, it all is an illusion of Security. No matter where you are, you are not safe.If not the Titans, the people. There is not a safe place, there is just this, and no matter how hard you try to put face” She pulled him to then slam him against the wall again, getting his full attention “You will always be a pathetic, spineless coward” She finished, letting go of Jean, the boy sliding down to sit on the floor and rest his head between his hands.

Eren scoffed, accidentally catching the girl’s attention.

“What?” She asked and Eren just shook his head.

“You are judging people for putting face, and here you are, aren’t you scared shitless just like the rest?” She stared, as if looking right through him. He felt chills run down his spine as she closed the distance. Mikasa quickly tried to get in between but with a simple dismissive sign, Eren told her to stay calm. He wanted to say what this condescending person had to say to defend themselves.

“I am” She spat truthfully, and for a moment, Eren was at loss “Everyone’s afraid shitless, but we all have ways in which we manage with that fear. I do not have much to lose other than my life, and what a big thing to lose that is, is it not? But well, that is the thrill of it. Fighting for your life to feel alive” She shook her head “But you have a lot more to lose than I do”

“Is that so?” He found her amusing.

“Yes” She nodded “You and that other guy are remarkably similar, both of you are spineless cowards” Eren tried to defend himself, but she would not allow it “You think no one sees it? That reckless behavior of yours during training, that harbored hate and resentment, your promise to free all of humanity from the threat that the Titans impose on us, isn’t it all just a façade to hide your terrible cowardice?” Relentless, she attacked with bare teeth “I get it, your mom is dead, but is it really that important? Everyone lost somebody that day. Your mother's death is insignificant for me, as it is for everybody else that did not know her. She was not the only one who lost her life that day. If you really want to do something for her, get your head out of your ass and acknowledge that the probability of you dying thanks to your reckless and suicidal behavior is high and you will most probably achieve nothing. One thing is training camp, other things are real titans, it is hell on earth, I know you know that. So, use your head occasionally, or else you will put everyone else’s life in jeopardy, even your own. You can’t avenge your mother’s death if you yourself are dead, can you?” 

Right then and there, it stopped being amusing. He remained silent. And then Mikasa launched at the girl, pushing her off, away from Eren, and she just chuckled. Her dark steely eyes staring at a pair of beautiful green orbs with a deadly intensity.

“She can’t save your ass every time you are in trouble, at that peace you’ll get her killed too, and it would all be your fault. Stop being a fool and use your talent with brains, or you will wind up being some titan’s meal. Unless the other one was right and you are suicidal, in that case, go ahead and die” She walked off leaving everyone at the dining hall speechless.

Startling everyone around, Eren slammed his fist against a table and marched out of the hall and sat annoyed on the steps.

“What is wrong with that girl?” He murmured to himself.

“Ignore everything she said, she does not know what she was talking about” Mikasa said as she took a seat besides the fuming boy.

“Do you know her?” He asked. Mikasa shrugged.

“[Name] [L.Name], she has been bunking with us since the beginning. Has never uttered a word until now” She said and Eren just sighed, wanting to change the flow of the conversation as soon as possible. He could not bare another second thinking about that rude and meddlesome cadet.

"What branch are you joining?" He asked, [Name]’s words lingering at the back of his mind.

"Survey Corps" 

"What?" Eren glanced at her "You were the highest in our group, you could easily enter de Military Police, they definitely would give you preferences"

"No" She flat out said "If you join the Survey Corps, I'll do too, if you join the Garrison, I'll do too, if you join the Military Police, I'll do too" the boy tilted his head to the side "If I weren't there, you'll die an early death"

"I do not need you to stick around. How long do you intend to continue this?"

"As long as I live," She said while accommodating her scarf, hiding the lower half of her face in the soft fabric "I was dead and brought to life once again. I am not forgetting that debt" Eren sighed "Any more than anything... I don't want to lose more family" Eren fidgeted with his hands knowing well enough Mikasa's had it hard, losing both families must be painful. Silence settled in until it went interrupted by their blond friend.

"Hey, we should head back to the dorm, the party's already over" 

"Hey, Armin" Eren saluted his friend while the blond sat next to Mikasa "What branch are you joining"

He watched his friend shift uncomfortably on his place while he scratched the back of his head.

"The Survey Corps" Green eyes flared open and before he could reply Armin continued "I know I'm weak and I'd be better off as a technician thanks to my brains, but then it would not matter if I came to die"

The trio glanced at the noise of some soldiers chatting, spotting Hannes amongst them. They saluted and continued their way to chat with the only father figure they have left.

"Who does she even think she is?" Jean fumed as Marco was trying to calm him down "I have never even seen her in all the three years, and the moment she appears, the moment she opens her mouth, she slips nonsense and calls me disgusting" He scoffed and frowned remembering the incident at the dining hall.

_ You will always be a pathetic, spineless coward _

Her words were still fresh on his mind, her iron grip still tingling in his neck. He ran his finger through the purplish bruise. He could not help being offended. He was not going to lie, her harsh words hit home somehow. Everybody is scared to die because nobody wants to die, not at all. Knowing what happened at Shinganshina, being the ones who lived the nightmare first-hand, he was glad he was not in the crossfire. But Eren, he watched his hometown in chaos, he saw his mother die, yet he's still willing to join the Survey Corps when he could be safe behind Sina's walls. That never ceased to annoy Jean. He did not know if he was courageous or just stupid. 

"She just said it because she was mad you would not stop bickering," Marco said, trying to calm down Jean, but the boy just could not shake her voice out of his head. Her hoarse voice as if it has not been used for years, which might not be too far from the truth.

_ You will always be a pathetic, spineless coward _

He shook his head trying to stop the sentence to repeat over and over again in his head. He held his head between his hands, exasperation evident in his features as Marco just stared at him worriedly.

"You know, Jean" The ash haired boy did not make any sign of listening, but Marco knew he was, he always was "It's okay to be scared, and to look out for oneself. You are human Jean and those monsters who have taken a lot from us, it is normal to be scared, I, myself am scared, just like she said, everyone is scared, but in the end, it's decision of oneself what to do about it, she shouldn't have said that stuff to either you or Eren. It was rather harsh."

"But she's right" Jean snapped, making Marco jump in his seat "I am a coward, she is right, I've never really thought of protecting the King, if not myself. I am a coward, and the fact that she so easily read me annoyed me" The boy sighed, and Marco smiled sweetly at him.

"You are not a coward Jean" The freckled boy patted his back "We are both going to the Military Police, and once there, we'll show people we are in fact no cowards and that if the occasion ever presents itself, we'll fight until our last breath" Jean looked at his friend and thanked whoever was watching over him for giving him such an amazing friend.

Later that night, Armin and other cadets entered the dorms, Eren unconscious.

Jean sighed hard and laid in his bunk, closing his eyes.

_ Tomorrow is new day. _


End file.
